The tourism industry continues to be the main casualty of the Corona virus • The president of the hotel association warns: "Thousands of workers will be laid off if assistance is not provided by the government, this is the worst crisis in the history of the hotel industry" • Major casualties: Tel Aviv and Jerusalem

• The empty beach in Tel Aviv and the hotels in the background // Photo: Yossi Zeliger

About 4,000 hotel workers have been taken away for free during the last few days. At the same time, reductions and layoffs of temporary workers and company employees are starting to emerge. "This is the most difficult crisis in the history of the hotel industry in Israel," says Amir Haik, president of the Israel Hotel Association. "If no government assistance is provided, mass workers will be exempted and the industry will lose more than half of its employees." .

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The hotel association figures show that in the current situation, the estimated annual damage to the industry in the current situation is estimated at NIS 4.2 billion, about NIS 350 million a month. Hotel occupancy rates have fallen below 40%, down about 30% on average over the same period last year. At the top of the descent table are Tel Aviv and Jerusalem where the hotels are currently about 30% occupied.

The expected closure of state borders for tourist arrivals from all over the world could result in immediate wiping of over NIS 500 million a month from the industry's revenues, according to data from the Hotel Association, about NIS 6 billion a year. A decrease in room occupancy to about 20% in tourist areas will result in mass layoffs and dozens of hotels being closed. This is a low to which the hotel industry has never reached Israel.

Already at this stage, some 4,000 employees were taken out to the personal helpline and at the same time dismissed temporary workers and KW employees. Networks unite adjacent hotels while individual hotels are on the verge of closure.

According to the President of the Hotel Association, Amir Haik, this is the most difficult crisis in the history of the hotel industry in Israel, which is considered one of the main growth engines in the economy and is now at the forefront of the crisis. "The industry, which is pouring billions into the state's revenue every year, is on the brink. It is time for the government to act responsibly not only for its citizens, but also for its economy, and that without the immediate flow of oxygen to the industry of about half a billion, this patient will die."